Stake Your Claim (Otago) Traditional Cache
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Size: 
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Keys "tools" for the miner was a "Miner's" Right and a "claim".
A Miner's Right is the most important Mining Privilege, and every miner had to obtain one before they could begin work. A Miner's Right cost £1 sterling and lasted one year from the date of issue, both in Otago and in Thames.
The Regulations of the Otago Gold Field states:
'THE MINER'S RIGHT. Every person residing on a Goldfield and engaged in mining for gold shall take out a Miner's Right, such Miner's Right to be produced for inspection when demanded by the Warden or other officer or by any person duly authorised in that behalf in writing by the Warden. Every Miner's Right shall before the issue thereof be signed by some Warden acting within the Province of Otago.'
Later The Mines Act of 1877 (long after the New Zealand Goldrush was over) gave the regulations more teeth:
'172. Any person not being the holder of a miner's right, license or lease duly empowering him in that behalf, who shall mine for gold or occupy or carry on any business upon any crown lands shall be liable to the penalties following - that is to say; For the first offense, a sum not exceeding Five Pounds, for the second or any subsequent offense, a sum not exceeding Ten pounds, not less than Five Pounds, with imprisonment in some gaol, there to remain for any time not exceeding one calendar month for every five pounds or fractional part of five pounds so to be paid.'
An ordinary claim registered with the Warden, usually for a single miner with a valid Miner's Right. In Otago a single claim could not exceed 100 x 100 feet (10000 square feet) while in Thames the claim area was larger, usually 50 x 300 feet (15000 square feet) for a reef claim. The miner would mark out his territory by placing pegs in the ground at the corners.
This "claim" was placed near the once rich Blur Spur in Gabriels Gully. The cache is a small pill container with logbook only. It is place within 2 m of one of the minor tracks which starts near a seat on DOC's very informative descriptive track which traverses the gold field. The track is somewhat over grown but easily followed for the short distance you have to travel to GZ. A small bit of bush bashing may be required.
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